The BBB Presents - Identity Theft Seminar

Protecting Yourself Against ID Theft

Posted by The Better Business Bureau - www.bbb.org on 12 January 2018 | 0 Comments

Amy Schram of the BBB presented an informative seminar on Identity Theft at the January EM NARI meeting. Read on for excellent tips to protect yourself and your business...

Scams are designed to either steal your money now, or steal your identity now in order to steal your money later. Scammers have all kinds of techniques to collect personally identifiable information (PII). Once they have it, they can effectively become you, using your identity to open accounts, file taxes, or obtain medical coverage.

How Identity Theft Scams Work:

With enough information about you, a scammer can take over your identity and commit a wide range of crimes. Scammers can make false applications for loans and credit cards, withdraw money from your bank account, or obtain services. They can also sell your information to others.

Identity theft may take a long time to detect. Scammers typically ensure that bills and statements for new accounts are not sent to your address. You may not notice what is happening until the scammer has already inflicted substantial damage on your assets, credit, and reputation.

If you believe you are a victim of identity theft, it is very important to act quickly. In the U.S., visit www.identitytheft.gov for information on how to stop and recover from identity theft. In Canada, the Anti-Fraud Centre has information on identity theft.

Tips to Spot This Scam:

Look for unexplained withdrawals, charges, and accounts. Review your bank account and credit card statements regularly. Look for unfamiliar charges, accounts, or withdrawals. Know when your bills are due; one tip-off for identity theft is when you stop receiving certain bills. This can happen because scammers have changed the address associated with your bank account or credit card. Debt collectors may call you about debts that aren’t yours. You can also set up automatic alerts on your accounts so you are notified every time a transaction is made.

Check your credit reports regularly for unauthorized inquiries and accounts. In the U.S., you have the right to check your credit report with each of the three major credit bureaus once per year at AnnualCreditReport.com. This is the only free crediting reporting service authorized by the Federal Trade Commission. Space these checks out across the year, and you will know fairly quickly if something is wrong. In Canada, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada provides information on requesting a free credit report.

Protect Yourself Against This Scam:

Be careful with your personal information. Treat your personal information like the valuable commodity it is. Make sure you shred any documents that have your bank account information, Social Security/Social Insurance number, or other personal information.

Be alert to phishing attempts. Scammers are sophisticated and their phishing attempts may come via email, text, social media message, even phone calls. Be suspicious of any unsolicited communication asking you for personal information. Whether it's a supposed tech support call, an offer for a free cruise, or a charity plea, they may really be after your personal information. Click here for BBB's tips on Phishing and on Tech Support Scams.

Protect Yourself Against Hackers:

Use strong passwords

Change your passwords frequently

Use different passwords for each online account or website

Be careful about the types of information you share online, especially if it is information that could be used to get past security questions on your accounts